


those who wear a heart inside their sleeves

by khuyen (y2kromantic)



Category: Kingdom Hearts (Video Games)
Genre: Canon Compliant, Character Study, Gen, Pre-Kingdom Hearts I, giving us the forbidden rikai friendship bc i cant wait another year for melody of memory
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-06-16
Updated: 2020-06-16
Packaged: 2021-03-03 19:46:42
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,298
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/24761026
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/y2kromantic/pseuds/khuyen
Summary: While Sora wasslacking offasleep, Kairi and Riku share a heart-to-heart with each other. Feelings may or may not be involved.(Spoiler Alert: They definitely are.)
Relationships: Kairi & Riku (Kingdom Hearts), Riku/Sora (Kingdom Hearts)
Comments: 6
Kudos: 28





	those who wear a heart inside their sleeves

**Author's Note:**

> i love kairi a lot, but nomura is a COWARD for making kairi a frickin loser and making the destiny trio feel like the two amigos plus kairi sometimes.
> 
> ((btw: i wrote this note before the kh:mom trailer release. kairi hype nomura dont mess this up or i will snap your knees.))

Waves of the sea washed against the shore of their play islands, wetting the soft sand as the twilight sun shined its UV rays of death from the skies above.

Sora was _supposed_ to be sewing the sails of their raft today, and yet there he was—lying back down onto the beach, not a single ounce of care in the world about the hellish Destiny Island summer heat or this small world of theirs as they knew it.

“It looks like Sora’s gone fishing again, Riks,” Kairi noted, a lopsided smile on her face as she dropped more wood onto the dock. “It really makes you wonder how he’s so easygoing all the time.”

“And that ‘easygoing’ attitude of his is delaying our progress on the raft,” Riku said bluntly. “If Sora is just going to nap all day on the beach, then we might as well not go at all.”

Kairi winced. “Ouch, that’s cold—even for you.” Riku stayed silent, continuing to thread the wooden planks together with twine as Kairi took a seat behind him on the dock.

She hummed a melody as she unstrapped her sandals, legs swaying back and forth before dipping her toes slightly into the blue ocean beneath them. Riku felt her weight against his back, feeling the tremors of the dock as he hunched over the pieces of driftwood in his hands.

A calming silence washed over them—something that could never be achieved with Sora awake. The distant sounds of the ocean and the squawks of seagulls rung softly in their ears, the faint smell of sea salt lingering in the air as the orange sun began to descend into the water.

Riku turned his head when the rocking suddenly stopped, puzzled. Kari's legs stood still, her eyes glancing at the jungle that’s always held memories of their youth—of their days climbing up forts and investigating caves. Childishly quarreling and roughhousing. Something normal among kids like them.

She can’t help but wonder.

“With the three of us, this place has always felt weird,” Kairi began. “you, me, Sora—we don’t ever get along together, and yet for some reason, we always do perfectly fine in pairs of two.”

Riku froze as Kairi shifted slightly to lean her head on his shoulders. He could hear how her breathing slowed to a calm, even pace in his ears, tuning out all the noises that sounded in the background.

“Why is that?” She asked, her voice light and airy.

Riku just shook his head. “It’s not like that, Kai. You‘re just imagining things. We get along just fine.”

Kairi turned her head to catch his eyes, a hint of a smile on her lips that didn’t quite reach her gaze. “You can tell me anything, Riku. Y’know that, right?”

“Sorry to rain on your parade, but there is nothing for me to tell you about.” With that, Riku's hands finally remembered what it was doing before, and went back to piecing the wood together.

But Kairi continued to egg him on. “Ever since we were little you’d always act so competitive whenever Sora was with me,” Riku began tying knots a bit quicker. “He would come over, so excited to show me the starfish he’d found on the beach. But then you’d run halfway across the play island to tell me about the eggs in the parrot’s nests that were about to hatch,”

“I didn’t run _across_ the island,” Riku mumbled quietly, but to no avail.

“At first, Sora would be a bit jealous that you stole his thunder, but then he‘d immediately light up at the sight of baby birds hatching from their eggshells,” Kairi reminisced. “You guys fought a lot around me, and I always had to beg you two to make up with each other afterwards.”

Riku frowned. “It’s not my fault Sora is a piece of work sometimes.”

“Weird how he’s conveniently a ‘piece of work’ every time the three of us get together, then.” Riku didn’t even try to deny it, and Kairi let out a slight laugh as she drew her legs up to her chest.

“I’ve seen the way you look at him, Riku,” she smiled, her voice deceptively innocent. Chills went down his spine.

Riku slid the twine through another hole in the wood. “...What is that supposed to mean?” He dared to ask.

“That day, I knew you weren’t paying attention to the parrots at all. The only thing you cared about was how happy Sora was.” Kairi hummed deliberately. She didn’t need to hear Riku's words of protests to know she was right. “He might misunderstand, y’know.”

“Just what are you playing at,” Riku huffed out instead, not bothering to dance around the issue at all. They both knew where this was going.

“Sora—he’s not exactly the sharpest tool in the shed,” Kairi pointed out. “I thought you would’ve known that best, Riku.” 

He wanted to drop the subject already, but knowing Kairi, she wouldn’t let it go _that_ easily. “Look, whatever you are thinking—just forget about it. That’s not how I feel at all.”

“Riiight,” She said, unconvinced. “And we’re just gonna forget how you’d always longingly stare at Sora whenever he’s not looking?”

It was difficult to keep his breath steady as if any of this didn’t bother him at all. Riku knew he kept those feelings under wraps pretty well, squashing out any semblance of affection that he worked so hard for to hide—from Tidus, Wakka, Selphie, _Sora_ _._

But Kairi found out about it first, stubbornly forcing it out of him long before even _he_ even had a name to call those emotions he kept bottled up. He’s lashed out after she had confronted him about it then, raising his voice in a blend of anger and confusion that welled in his chest.

Kairi was always more perceptive than she let on. If the others could barely interpret Riku's cold stares, then she might as well read him like a book. This wasn’t the first time she had brought it up, and Riku knew this wouldn’t be the last. But why now?

With one last knot, Riku connected all the driftwood together. He stood up, unfazed by how Kairi tipped backward as he dusted off any dirt that might’ve gotten onto his shirt.

Kairi laid back onto the dock, creaking within each step Riku took. “Aww. you’re leaving already?”

“I think we’re going to wrap it up for today. I need to go home and ice my rope burns anyway so we can work more on the raft tomorrow,” Riku stated firmly, hoping Kairi would foget it just this once.

“Well... just don’t overwork yourself, Riks,” And he sighed, thankful she didn’t press him for any more questions. “Maybe we should get Sora to do his fair share of work every once in a while.”

“We should.” Riku curtly agreed. They both turned to look at sora, still lying peacefully on the beach, ever the slacker.

Kairi shook her head with a fond smile. “Oh, whatever will we do with him? If he keeps on napping in the afternoon like this, he won’t be able to sleep tonight,”

“You go home first. I’ll bring him home later...” Riku trailed off, realizing the implications of what he’d just said.

He met her gaze, and there it was again—that knowing glint in her eyes. “I guess that’s what he has you for, huh?”

“It’s not like that,” He heavily huffed out.

“Uh-huh. Whatever you say.” She sat up, back straight as she stretched out her arms. “Whatever you say.”

With one last sigh, Riku ran off the deck to wake Sora up, the sun setting in the far off horizon for another day once more.

**Author's Note:**

> thanks for reading!! it’s not that interesting so i’m rlly grateful,,; xoxo.


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